From public to private sector

[Liam]

Anyone moved from working in a school environment into the private sector? I have a potential opportunity to do so but I'm trying to weigh up the pros and cons.

My biggest concern is job security but sometimes we have to take a risk I think. I'm really in two minds.

 

Thanks

 

Liam

[Liam]

I'm on an academy now. Pension is excellent, salary competitive, love the people just think I need a change after 10 years.

I have an interview for a company early next week, it's much closer to home with a slight better salary but I'm not sure it will bring the same opportunities.

What does being an IT manager in the big wide world actually involve. No kids testing my system that's for sure.. I'm not counting my chickens as I haven't been offered the position but I'm not entirely sure I am creating a good perception of myself. I don't want to hinder any opportunities where I am now now that i have shown intent to leave.

 

Oh it's never easy. I'm contemplating retracting my interest

[mjs_mjs]

What does being an IT manager in the big wide world actually involve. No kids testing my system that's for sure..

 

I made the jump - and i'm not looking back. I learnt lots from working in a school and then in a Uni, and i'm still learning loads in the private sector.

 

Every job has it's issues - if it isn't the students breaking things it'll be the staff. And staff in the private sector range in their use and skill far more than in schools. You will still get the requests for how do I click on this, and to fix anything with a plug on it - and anything without a plug on it also.

 

Just weight up the pro's and cons, and make the discussion that suits you/your family. Job security isn't too much of an issue - I remember a time when school IT wasn't a secure job with the BSF things that went on.

[elsiegee40]

@john, @Domino, @Soulfish and @plexer have all done it ... Actually they're just the ones who came to mind first; there are actually quite a lot of edugeeks who have moved in that direction. I came from business into education. Sweeping generalisation: You will find that larger organisations have better career progression opportunities and are more likely to train you and appraise you.

 

It is different, but you shouldn't let difference scare you off. Even in the public sector there is no such thing as a job for life any more. Is the job one that you want to do? Is it in a location you can travel to sensibly? Does it pay enough? Is there anything that you particularly like or dislike about the organisation? You have to make your own mind up on this one. If your only fear is job security, then I suggest you do some research into the profitability, or otherwise, of the business. The hard bit is leaving any job, no matter how bad things are in it. Don't be afraid of change.

[rich_tech]

From what I am seeing private seems to offer above and beyond public these days, though it is a difference to job security and holiday perks, lots of private jobs advertise things like private healthcare/share incentives/pensions/certifications and training and other perks.

[webman]

I've done it too, I moved from a secondary into a small web development business. For me, it was further away at the time (but I moved closer) but more pay and doing something I enjoy more. Sometimes clients can be awkward, and it has its stressful moments, but all in all I am glad I made the move.

 

However, I haven't had any pay increases since I started nearly 4 years ago.

 

Job security is a risk, and should quite rightly be a concern... Things to help you consider how much of a risk for you, would be to look at your skills, the local job market, the company's credentials, and your financial/living circumstances.

[john]

@Liam you sounds like me in this respect, I was manager at a secondary up north that had just expanded, close to home etc.. so ticked many boxes but was time for change for me and to spread my wings further.

 

I'm now an IT Manager covering a large region spanning to +8hrs in time zones from the UK and it certainly differs and its mainly good. We have funding to buy kit to improve the business etc.. its not on tap however it needs justification but if we can justify it and show management what it will do it can usually be found, even in a school once convinced due to limited funds available it didn't always happen.

 

I get to travel and have been across Europe with this job which is nice as I had never been abroad before, I have staff in the UK and elsewhere that I manage which gave me new challenges and dealing with people across different time zones, countries and cultures which are also very exciting and can be incredibly frustrating as its clear IT in some countries which are maybe seen as good places are very much not and I do get tired of the porkies coming from some resellers in some parts of the world as they forget I buy things everywhere so they can be found out.

 

I do miss the kids however I have big kids instead that sulk that the PC is too slow or crashed or a website is blocked or the email with cats in didn't make it or they need more disk space for X so replace kids with adults and its a business however we don't get the mangled mice, missing keys on keyboards etc that you do in schools which is nice and not had the chewing gum in USB ports yet either!

 

Job Security yep a risk in life in any job tbh, I feel relatively secure in mine, I started as a Systems guy and moved to the management role I am in now so progression is possible but how much higher depends on the firm I guess, our structure is quite good but not much higher to go really in my view so if I want higher or more its go elsewhere.

 

Pay is always something people think I must be a millionaire now... that varies tbh my salary isn't as good as it should be I see jobs on here in uni's that look attractive to me still however I get to work with an amazingly talented group of people which is a big plus and that group of people share skills as we are not silo'd we have areas that people know better than others but we are still jack of all trades in many cases.

 

The shiny extras like heath care etc.. yep they do exist I have some medical cover that pays towards Dentist, Eyes etc... that's a nice thing but it certainly, for me anyway, doesn't make me go I must stay and they respect me as its not that bigger fuss unless your a frequent ill person or have lots of claim potential which I thankfully don't.

 

You need to weigh it up after 10 years maybe your a bit stale and stuck in your ways and a change will re-vitalise you for the better, I know I was, and I know that if someone offered me an amazing package to go back to Education I'd have a lot of new ideas and things I would do differently to how I did them in the past seeing the technology we use and things we have done which are all transportable to Education just on a smaller scale.

[plexer]

I left the school I had been working at for 10.5 years in February 2014 I had really got to the end my tether as the environment was just very toxic with attitudes etc... towards the IT support and some of it was because of the timeframe I'd been there as well.

 

I moved from that position to working as the sole UK IT support engineer for a Belgium based company who after 6 months decided to make me redundant to save costs which was a bit weird, after a month or so off and a temporary job with a local manufacturing company I got a position with an IT security reseller as a sales engineer and I've just celebrated my 1 year anniversary with them.

 

I love my job including going to work on a Monday morning, I travel all over the UK and have also been over to Belfast and Guernsey for work, since joining the company I've learnt new skills including taking and passing the CEH v8 exam and have had at least 1 pay rise.

 

I work with a great bunch of people both on the sales and technical side and the company also all socialise together including an end of year party at the directors house.

 

As with any move you have to weigh it up and it was hard when I was made redundant after 6 months but it's definitely worked out for the best.

 

If you want to discuss anything feel free to send me a pm.

 

Ben

[GrumbleDook]

I went from school to LA to private company, but it was to a company mainly working in Education.

 

The salary and perks are good, the hours can be long (partly because I commute 2 days a week to London ... anything from 2 1/2 hours to 5 hours each way) but the work is challenging and exciting.

 

Job security is good for me due the projects I am working on but I am lucky in that way.

 

Would I go back to public sector? Part of me says yes ... in a heartbeat ... but I know it would be a bad move for me, unless it was back into Senior Leadership in the right school / academy group. Even then I would end up longing to get back to where I am now so doubt I would stay long.

Edited November 7, 2015 by elsiegee40

[Ephelyon]

Even then I would end up longing to get back to where I am now so doubt I would stay long.

 

LP must be pretty good then!

[Tallwood_6]

I made the move from public to private sector about 7 months ago after 9 years and I wish I had done it sooner. It's easy to convince yourself if you have been somewhere a while that it's better the devil you know.

 

Even if you arnt sure yourself yet I'd go for the interview and see what you think of the people and the place. If nothing else you will gain some interview experience.

[witch]

Even if you arnt sure yourself yet I'd go for the interview and see what you think of the people and the place. If nothing else you will gain some interview experience.

 

This^

And you don't have to make a decision until they offer you the job.

[dry]

I've known 1 NM and 1 techie who have made the move. The NM was NM for ~14 years at one school, moved to an IT consultancy and then moved on from that IT Consultancy that 'poached' him after a few months. This was because he had a personal life-ambition that he wanted to achieve and the opportunity to do that came up. I think he still contracts for the consultancy but during the week does something *totally* different (and very exciting from what he's told me!).

 

The techie I knew that made the move also lasted only a few months. I think he found the move too difficult to manage and it showed in his work. He's back working at a school afaik.

 

The private sector is certainly attractive- I was on the radar of a local consultancy for a long while. They tried to poach me- offering very good perks, decent salary and offering to sponsor my degree!! I had a gut feeling not to go for it though, and am glad I didn't. A few months later it transpired the CEO had been splashing cash that didn't exist and about half the company was cut (including the CEO). They apparently couldn't afford cleaners at one point and the head of HR had to stay late to do the vacuuming.

 

Yes it's attractive but tread carefully and do your research. There's a wealth of information that you can get from Companies House and other sources to assess a company's liquidity. Read their annual report if you can get it and make an informed decision before committing.

[mthomas08]

Working in education has brought job security, not sure if this applies to others in the academy era.

 

To be honest it's always going to be School based. I had job security for a while until a new boss came along and pretty much depreciated the entire IT Support Team.

 

My current job, new HT resulted in a lot more appreciation for the job. Known a lot of people though that have been effected by educational cuts, also know people in the public sector on far better pay. So I think it's all based on the type of job you go in.

[JoeBloggs]

I worked in a secondary School and now I'm in a private company. Some of the perks are good, training courses (if needed and justified, no certification's as this doesn't benefit them), no international travel like some of the above - but I travel around the city and receive a car allowance, BUPA, pension but isn't very good I think it is the minimum they are legally required to provide, mobile phone, professional membership - so all in all it is a good package.

 

I'm in a small IT Team (2) but I feel very secure in my job, but not many career options to progress - although in 4 years I've had 6 pay increases so I really can't argue! Although if another recession hit nothing is 100% secure.

 

I enjoy it here and get on with all the staff - I'm off on several Christmas parties as we have different offices and departments. Defiantly no teacher / support kind of divide.

 

If the sh1t hits the fan though you will be held responsible to the board.

 

You'll need to weigh up for pros and cons as you've said. As your current role and potential role will be very specific - what is right for you may not be right for me!

[Tall_Paul]

I went from a school (5 years there) to the private sector (head of IT for a small manufacturing firm).

 

What prompted me to jump was a new Head coming in who didn't value support staff at all (but saw no problem increasing SLT from 6 to 13).

 

I'm very happy where I am now, and it's nice to feel appreciated again. In contrast I wasn't replaced and an overstretched team of 3 is now a massively overstretched team of 2.

[apoth0r]

Everyone is allowed to dip their toes, as Witch said, go to the interview see what people are like and the place!

 

I've never looked back if I'm honest, best move I ever made.

[googlemad]

How do you find the interviews? I'm currently looking to do the jump and haven't applied for anything in particular yet but I imagine some of their scenarios differ to common educational ones!

 

I would also assume there is a lot more pressure to ensure minimal downtime as Internet outages could cost the company every minute it is down for example

[Tallwood_6]

The interview process for all the private sector jobs I've found far less stressful. But using decent agency makes all the difference.

[Joanne]

I've worked for 2 private firms, the first had poor salary and working conditions, but there were perks like going on company outings and the chance for overtime. I got overlooked for promotion there because I was so good in the position that I was in. This annoyed me somewhat and I found employment elsewhere.

 

The second company had a better salary and was flexible if I ever needed time off, but the problem with them was that it was a small family run firm and sometimes the communication was poor and you would get sent from pillar to post for no reason at all!!

 

I now work back in the public sector and despite there not being any prospects, I'm happy.

Edited November 9, 2015 by Joanne

[Soulfish]

I made the move from being a Director of IT in an Academy to the Private sector a few years ago now and haven't looked back since . I work for a global company as the technical authority for O365. The work and people are great, and there are some very unique challenges in our environment (on top of having 100k users in basically every country in the world!), if I need to go on any training I can (I've been on 15 days of IT training this year), I'm allowed to go to conferences/IT events (from small one day things in the UK/London to large events like Microsoft Ignite), there's travel around the world if I want to visit offshore teams (or need to for project reasons), the pay/benefits/pension/bonus are all as good or better (and to be honest I was well paid in the public sector) and most importantly I'm trusted to be the technical authority for my product stack and have input into anything even vaguely related to it.

 

It isn't all rosy in the private sector though - I was head hunted to go work for a consultancy and while the work was interesting and varied I didn't like the life style. I was lucky in that I was able to move back to my previous company as they wanted me back in my current role, but make sure to research and make sure that any role/company is what you really want. I'd agree with everyone else though, I'd never turn down an interview as they're always good experience

[jamin100]

sorry for digging up a thread thats a a few months old buttttt...

having worked in the education for my entire adult life (14 years 3 roles), I now have an interview for a big multinational company on their support desk of sorts. Bit further away from home but £8k pay rise should i get offered the position.

Had a video type interview this weekend which was a very odd experience but they now want to meet me next week.

 

Im a bit nervous to be honest as the jump to the big bad private sector does seem daunting, however there are next to no opportunities in my current school for progression and I will be at the top of my pay scale within the next 18 months should i stay here and they don't pay above that for support staff....

Job security isn't certain either as there have been talks around making full time staff term time only. which would mean a pay cut...

 

The role would be more focused on one / two particular pieces of technology which are the 2 that I'm most interested in so would be very transferable to any company rather than the more generalist role that I've occupied for the last 14 years....

Edited January 11, 2016 by jamin100

[RobD]

I've had two jobs in education and 3 in the private sector. Although the education jobs were fine I'd never move back to education, too many opinions (everything is a debate) and where I worked there was a weird us and them feeling between teaching staff and support staff.

 

Where I work now, its really professional and there's money to burn which is nice.

[twin--turbo]

2 years in Private

15.5 Years Schools

2 years nearly back in Private.

 

Don't regret geting out of eduction at all. But mainly I was feeling very stagnant, and In my old place redundancy was a commonly used word.. I am now in an organisation where there has never been any talk of redundancy.

 

TT

[Soulfish]

sorry for digging up a thread thats a a few months old buttttt...

having worked in the education for my entire adult life (14 years 3 roles), I now have an interview for a big multinational company on their support desk of sorts. Bit further away from home but £8k pay rise should i get offered the position.

Had a video type interview this weekend which was a very odd experience but they now want to meet me next week.

 

Im a bit nervous to be honest as the jump to the big bad private sector does seem daunting, however there are next to no opportunities in my current school for progression and I will be at the top of my pay scale within the next 18 months should i stay here and they don't pay above that for support staff....

Job security isn't certain either as there have been talks around making full time staff term time only. which would mean a pay cut...

 

The role would be more focused on one / two particular pieces of technology which are the 2 that I'm most interested in so would be very transferable to any company rather than the more generalist role that I've occupied for the last 14 years....

 

I went from being a generalist to specialising on Unified Comms and Communication (anything to do with Email, Intranets, Instant Messaging or communication in general - Office 365 basically ) and haven't looked back. I've actually found my generalist background very useful and often get pulled into things unrelated to my key areas because of it. When you have an idea of how everything works together you're very useful even if its not your key area/specialism